May 1, 2026
Beloved of God,
Many wonderful things are happening in the life of Covenant this month.
But this month, the third most significant holy day in the whole year occurs. That day is Pentecost (which in 2026 falls on May 24, May’s fourth Sunday).
Just before He returned to heaven, Jesus told His disciples that He was sending them out “to all nations” to share His message of love and hope. He told them not to rush out to fulfill that assignment, but to stay in Jerusalem until He’d sent down upon them the Holy Spirit, who would clothe them “with power from on high” for that evangelistic task.
On the first Pentecost after Easter, the Holy Spirit descended upon the disciples, and three thousand new people started to follow Jesus.
The Holy Spirit is the third Person of the Trinity. That holy Person carries into the depths of a human being God’s own life and strength, that they might carry on the mission of Jesus. The Spirit inspires them, making them motivated men and women in the service of God and neighbor; empowers them, making them mighty movers in the uplifting of society and people; ghostwrites for them, making them messengers, in word and deed, of the good news of Jesus.
Pentecost means that we need not strive to fulfill our purpose by self-effort alone. It means that God longs to make us more than ourselves, to make us people who live beyond our spiritual means. Pentecost means that the Christian life is not so much prevailing in noble aspiration, as availing of supernatural grace.
All we have to do is to repent and believe – and to give up on making our own way and instead give ourselves over to God’s control. Then we can bear a more compelling witness to Jesus, more brightly reflect on to others the light of Jesus’ compassion and righteousness, love those around us more like Jesus, and have greater impact in changing our community for the better.
This Pentecost, May 24th, please join us in worship (and a church picnic afterward if you’d like!) as we give thanks for the gift of the Spirit and hang higher hopes on the unprecedented possibilities the Spirit brings.
Warmly in Christ,
Rob & Adele
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